Weekend treat

First Chinese meal in almost two weeks.

Week in review: my bread

Saturday, Sunday and Monday:
Some kind of buns – forgot the brand name – The last couple of them tasted awful.

Tuesday and Wednesday:
Olafson’s HealthyWay Sprouted Grain, Seed Loaf – not bad. A little dry, though.

Thursday and Friday:
Dempster’s Premium Bagels – Blueberry and my favorite.

My diet

Eight (8) slices of bread or three (3) bagels daily, either Olafson's or Dempster's, plus plenty of water. -- Essentially the same with the fasting priest whenever Parliament sits.

Change of venue

Because of money problem, I had to change venue for my hunger strike. I also decided to change my fast to a bread-and-water one, a formula of the protecting priest in front of the Centre Block.

So around 3:00PM, in the middle of a snow-and-hail storm - yeah, snow in Vancouver's October, trust me on this one too - I went to my favorite store and bought a bag of bread.

It will take me a couple of days to settle down to my new diet. At the mean time, I do not mind sharing it with you.

Heading home

Can not possibly stay at airport night after night. Sleep deprivation was worse than hunger. So I am heading home.

58

With a suitcase and a sleeping bag in tow, I was so tired from running around Wednesday that I stayed put here in the airport all day yesterday.

 

I am feeling better now after the much-needed rest, except for the hunger feeling.

16

Checked with NCC InfoCenter. I need contact individual MP first to be let in.

Difficult to access Internet. Feeling tired running around.

I guess I will just stay put in front of Centre Block.

I am on

I do not know how to fast on Parliament Hill. But here is my plan today.

 

I will take advantage of my energy level on this first day to walk around and visit as many MPs as possible.

 

My objective is to spend a couple of minutes with each MP, bring my report to their attention and answer any questions they may have.

 

I will wear a headband to show my resolve and determination.

I am in

Arrived at Ottawa this PM, with a sleeping bag and some change clothes.

First order was to check the news. Disappointed at the stiffening silence. "Oops, I need to do it again."

-- 6:30PM EST

Decided to stay at the airport tonight. -- You know I am running out of money, right?

Harvey's for dinner. Ordered an extra burger. This offically started my hunger strike in Ottawa.

Here is the deal, MPs. I will not eat until I hear you talk about my report in the House.

Alternatively, you can challenge me on any part of my report, either fatually or logically.

I am here and I am listening.

-- 9:30PM EST

This Internet station cost 2 bucks for 10 minutes. I hope my blog is worth the money.

-- 12:55 AM EST

Vancouver --> Ottawa

Booked an Air Canada ticket to Ottawa for tomorrow.

Don't know where to stay. Maybe I will bring a sleeping bag so that I can hit the ground running.

Open Letter to MPs

Burnaby, BC
October 18, 2004


This coming Wednesday, October 20, 2004, will be the one-year anniversary of Cecilia Zhang's abduction and murder.

Although an arrest had been made in her case, the police have yet to provide a motive for this hideous crime perpetrated against such an innocent little girl.

Today, I would like to respectfully call your attention to my report entitled "A JOBLESS IMMIGRANT WITHOUT PRIVACY: A Case for Hunger Strike".

I allege that Cecilia Zhang murder has a connection - through my legal case against certain private individuals as detailed in my report - to the highest level of federal government and the ruling Liberal Party.

I am fully aware of the seriousness of my allegation and its potential impact on Parliament. I have asked myself countless times: how likely is my allegation to be true? And each time when I take a hard look at the facts in my case, I only become more confident in my reasoning.

And I am prepared to go to Ottawa and to do whatever is necessary to bring the public's attention to my report and my allegation.

We live in a free and democratic society. Freedom and democracy call for openness and transparency. Secrecy, on the other hand, breeds corruption, oppression and tyranny. With absolute secrecy, criminals can get away with murder.

No government should cover up individual wrong-doings. And no political party should bend the rules and laws for its friends.

Don't let the devil triumph.


Jingdong (Jim) Yu
A Jobless Immigrant without Privacy
Report: www.sfu.ca/~jyu1
Blog: www.jyu1.blogspot.com

Post-fast

Two surprises after I came home last night:

1. I did not eat as much as I thought I could;
2. I drank a surprisingly large quantity of water.

I guess I was a little dehydrated. Next time in Ottawa, I will know better.

SFU Folks, you may go to the Townhall (Item 186) web conference at caucus.sfu.ca to discuss my report.

 

47

Have been watching clock for the last hour.

Finanlly I did it. It's time to go home, cook, eat and rest.

Maybe I'll see you on the other side, mon.

44

Just noticed heart beats faster and mouth becomes drier. I guess that means I am still human.

Four hours to go.

Destroying liberalism for a generation

Amid all those theatres and dramas of Liberal politicking, I actually found, on page 289, a couple of obscure references to the single most important issue facing Liberal Party today: Where is the soul of the party?

On the soul that was infected, nobody articulated it better than Akaash Maharaj: "The party itself, in our elected wing and in our civil wing, must exercise meaningful political leadership to quash what I feel has been a disease galloping through our ranks for the better part of a political generation - and that is a fundamentally illiberal impulse to equate dissent with disloyalty. I believe ... meaningful dissent is not merely the right of every person; it is the responsibility of every thinking person to expect that. A system that does not recognize that truth is simply today a system which will inevitably and rightfully collapse in on itself. Our loyalty as Liberals is to one another, but our loyalty as Liberals is first and foremost to the ideals that we represent."

On the need to fix the soul, Tom Axworthy was more blunt: "Liberalism in Canada is at such a divide today: the philosophy still has resonance but its application to today's problems and opportunities needs a fundamental rethinking."

Those assessments were made in September 2002 when Chretien was the king and Martin was the king-apparent. -- I guess it would be up to the next generation of Liberals to embark on the journey of soul-searching.

No wonder the Conservatives have so much room to grow.

41

Raining pretty hard outside.

Wearing extra sweater. Staying inside the library. Still not feeling warm enough.

Noticed people eating in library. The sight and aroma of food stirred up my yearning.

Seven hours to go.

Juggernaut (2003)

I am reading this excellent book on Liberal politicking by Susan Delacourt -- one of the top journalists in Canada and a frequent guest on CBC Politics program.

I borrowed a copy from SFU library on Monday, together with a couple of books on racism. -- Just want to be fair to those of you who do not already know.

36

Still want food.

While having a couple cups of warm water before bed last night, I could feel that my teeth were loosing up - I must have been gritting them all day yesterday - and my stomach expanding. Slept above average, though.

Safety first

In the current climate, however, I'd better avoid going along in the mountain.

Reflection on my summer

I do not know about you. Overall, I have enjoyed mine.

My favorite activity this summer was climbing the Burnaby Mountain to get to SFU. I started it on July 17 or 18.

When you fail to drive others crazy, you can always try to get physical with yourself. -- Try it when you are depressed, my friend.

Still, the memorable thing about climbing was when I shouted out into the vast mountain, most of what I heard was some bone-headed, moronic and deliberately obtuse echo.

Wasn't that cool?

23

Still feeling hungry.

Didn't they say that feeling would go away after a while? -- Maybe not too soon, I guess.

At the mean time, read and think.

17

It's been 17 hours since I had my last meal.

Yes, I can still hear my stomach crying, albeit not as loud as a couple of hours ago. -- It's a good thing that I had a big dinner last night.

48-hour Fast at SFU

I am on a hunger strike to bring awareness of my report to SFU community during these two days of convocation.

Comments are welcome.

Raining in Vancouver

That's a sure sign Fall is coming. Isn't it?